3884 stories by Philip Conneller
Pittsburgh Mobster and Illegal Casino Supremo Lenny Strollo Dies, Aged 90
Lenny Strollo, the former mobster once credited by the FBI with operating America’s biggest illegal casino, has died at age 90. Strollo came up through the ranks of the Pittsburgh Mob, becoming the boss of the Youngstown, Ohio crew in the 1960s....
Rockford Hard Rock Investor Denied Gaming License Over Shooting Incident
A prominent Rockford, Ill. restaurateur and investor in the city’s forthcoming Hard Rock Casino was denied a casino supplier license because of a prior shooting incident, the Rockford Register Star reports. Joseph Castrogiovanni, 69, owns Giovanni’s Restaurant and Convention Center in Rockford....
Florida Legalizes Sports Betting, Craps, Roulette in $2.5B Gambling Deal
Lawmakers in Tallahassee on Wednesday approved the biggest tribal casino revenue-share deal in America and legalized sports betting in Florida in the process. The legislature had called a special session to consider the $2.5 billion deal, thrashed out last month between Florida...
Mashpee Tribe Elects New Chairman, Land-in-Trust Fight Continues
The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe has a new leader. Brian Weeden, 28, was elected chairman of the Massachusetts-based tribe over the weekend, Cape Cod Times reports. He will also become the head of the Mashpee Gaming Commission. As such, he must decide whether...
Gaming Industry Fintech Firm Handled €100M for Wirecard Fugitive Jan Marsalek
German prosecutors believe Finolita, a Lithuanian payments processor with links to the online gaming space, helped siphon $100 million out of fallen fintech giant Wirecard prior to its dramatic collapse last year. According to The Financial Times, authorities suspect that a portion...
Staten Island Bookie Denies Mafia Association, Sentenced for Extortion
A Staten Island bookie, who prosecutors claimed was an associate of the Colombo crime family, was sentenced Thursday to 18 months in prison plus one year’s supervised release for the extortionate collection of credit. Primo Cassarino’s father, Primo Cassarino Sr., was a...
Crown Resorts Rejects ‘Too Low’ $6.5B Blackstone Bid
Crown Resorts has rebuffed the takeover advances of US private equity giant Blackstone . A regulatory investigation into Crown’s much-criticized VIP businesses practices got underway in the State of Victoria on Monday. The Australian casino company said in a statement to the...
Eureka Casino Players Card Leads to Arrest of Las Vegas Murder Suspect
A notorious gang member charged with the March fatal shooting of a Las Vegas man was identified with the help of a casino players’ reward card that placed him close to the scene of the crime. Las Vegas Metro Police also used...
Pandemic Ignites Facebook Proxy Pull-Tab Gambling Craze in Alaska
The State of Alaska has written cease-and-desist letters to organizers of dozens of Facebook groups that promote “proxy betting” on pull tabs. Proxy betting is big in Asia. Its popularity in America’s frozen northwestern extremity appears to be a more recent phenomenon...
Top Crypto Trader on Trial in China Over Online Gambling Cash Laundromat
One of China’s most prominent crypto traders went on trial in the city of Hangzhou this week. He is accused of "assisting internet criminal activities" for his alleged role in the laundering of billions of dollars linked to online gambling and other...
